Hospital Community Service
by Kaito Lune
Summary: Zoe has to work community services in a hospital and helping out kids in the hospital. 01-02-03-04 AU X-over. Eventual TAKUMI. More pairings inside. COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1: Volunteer Service

**A/N: Hey-oo! Guess who's here with a new story? That's right, moi! Here's yet another AU centered around the Frontier gang. Unlike my other long AU's, this one doesn't have Digimon as a main part of it. Sure there'll be Digimon but they'll be nothing more than stuffed animals, virtual pets, and video games. This will pull on your heart strings a bit (or so I hope, I've never done tragedy in a story before). Here's a heads up: there will be the following couples: Takumi, Sorato, Michi, Takari, Kenyako, Jurato, Rukato, with hints of: Kozumi, Koizumi, Taiora, and quite a few others.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. I will never own it.**

"_Get into the car!"_

"_No! I-!"_

Click. _"Get in!"_

The car zoomed down the street. _"Faster!"_

"_I can't I'll get-!"_

Click! _"Do it!"_

"_But-."_

CRASH!

**Chapter 1: Community Service**

"So, Miss Orimoto," began the lawyer, looking up at the fifteen year old girl with blonde hair and green eyes. "You claimed to have had a gun put to your head by Rin Yagami-" He pointed his pen at the blonde haired, blue eyed, fifteen year old. "-who put a gun to your head and told you to drive while she was under the influence?"

Zoe Orimoto nodded her head. "Yes, sir," she replied, confirming what he had said.

"She got the alcohol from the next door party?"

"Yes."

"How'd she get the gun?" he asked, still skeptical.

"I-I don't know," she looked downwards defeated.

"Then the two of you proceeded in a joy ride over the speed limit in the middle of the night in the street, putting someone in the hospital, and destroying public property on several stops during your joy ride." This was the first time it wasn't a question.

Zoe nodded. "Yes sir," she said.

"You could have said no," said the lawyer.

Zoe's attorney stood up and shouted, "I object, Mr. Miller! How could she have said no without a bullet in her head? Your client had a _gun_ pointed to her head for God's sake and you expect her to say no?"

"Calm down, Roda," the judge commanded in a calm voice. Zoe's attorney sat down in a huff. The judge turned to Rin's attorney. "Is that all?" Mr. Miller nodded. "Does anyone have any more witnesses to call to the stand?"

No one said a thing. "We'll have an hour break before I decide who's to punish."

Zoe got off the stand and went to meet her father and mother. As she walked past, she saw a brown haired boy who was sitting there near to tears. Zoe recognized him as the boy who was with the lavender haired girl that was harmed by Rin. He had called 911 for the girl before Rin had ran back into the car, put the gun to her head, and ordered her to drive.

Zoe shook back the memory with fright. They boy turned to her and narrowed his eyes into a vengeful glare. Zoe turned her attention back towards the doors but she still couldn't shake off the guilt.

Rin walked past her with an even face. Zoe glared at her. _How can she be so calm?_ she wondered, glaring at Rin.

After the hour break, everyone returned to the court house to hear the verdict: "Both are found guilty of desecration of public property, disturbing the peace, under aged drinking, and assault. You are sentenced to juvenile detention for a hundred hours."

"Wait, sure, my client was forced to do it," Roda spoke up.

"The accusations are all there, Roda. There is no changing my mind."

"Well, since my client and the other girl both destroyed the community and the other girl has done assault under the influence, why not have them do community services to make up for their actions?" suggested Roda.

The judge thought this over for a minute. "All right, instead of a hundred hours in juvenile detention, you have to make up those hours in the hospital during the summer excluding the weekends." The judge banged the gavel against the desk. "Court augured."

Everyone got up to leave. Zoe's parents were furious that she had to have the punishment as well, see as Zoe was forced to do it. Zoe also felt their rage but to a much lesser degree. She knew that she couldn't get out of it. The closest hospital was St. Martin's and she'd have to start Monday. What a way to waste the summer.

**This is only the beginning! Expect more coming on around September 5****th****.**

**Yep, Rin's going to be in this. Please R&R!**


	2. Chapter 2: St Martin's Hospital

**Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. I will never own it.**

**Chapter 2: St. Martin's Hospital**

St. Martin's Hospital was a general hospital that was pretty bit. It was four stories. The west wing on the first floor was for expecting mothers. The east wing was for those who were recovering from illnesses. The second floor on the east wing was surgery while the first floor was for emergencies. The basement was the morgue. They had a trauma center, burn unit, cancer center, intensive care unit, and several others on the top floors.

Zoë walked into the hospital's waiting room, papers in one hand and her mother and father behind her. She walked up to the desk. A man behind the desk looked up at her. He had red hair and black eyes and wore blue scrubs. "Zoë Orimoto, right?" he asked. Zoë nodded and handed him her papers.

He looked them over and then put them in a folder and in a drawer. He stood up and asked for someone to take his position as he began showing the new "volunteer" around. "I'm Izzy Izumi. You'll be working in the west wing on the third floor. You're assigned to these rooms." Izzy pointed to a map of the third floor on the west wing. He handed her a pair of purple scrubs. "Oh, make sure not to cough or sneeze on the girl."

Zoë thanked him and went on her way. She went to one of the rooms where she was indicated to. She walked into a room with two beds. The room was big enough to hold quite a few people yet have enough visitors to come and see them. The room had a glass window that looked out at the street below. The walls were white. Zoë noticed that only one of the beds was filled by a young girl at least around six with thin brown hair and amber eyes. She wore a short sleeve teal short sleeve shirt and the same pajama pants.

Zoë pointed to the bathroom. "Can I?" she asked. The girl looked up and smiled weakly and nodded. Zoë went into the bathroom and changed into the scrubs and put the bag the scrubs were in on the handle.

"So you're a patient I'm assigned to help?" asked Zoë.

The girl shrugged. "I guess," she replied. "I'm Kari Kamiya."

"Zoë Orimoto," replied Zoë. Zoë looked around not too sure what to do. "Um . . . I'm going to check out the other room and see who else there is."

Kari watched as the older girl went across the hall into the next room. This one was the same as the one Kari had but it didn't have a window and both beds were occupied. One was by a girl that looked like she was only a few years younger than Zoë with lavender hair and big glasses. The other was occupied by a boy around her age with dark brown hair and brown eyes. They were both wearing the same pajamas that Kari was wearing. The girl was trying to sleep while the other was drumming on his legs from boredom.

"Can you stop that?" asked the lavender haired girl in a snarl. She was clearly annoyed.

"Hi," Zoë said nervously.

The two looked up at her and said hello. "So you're the girl Dr. Kido told us about. Zoë, right?" asked the lavender haired girl.

"Yeah," Zoë replied.

"You are much prettier than I thought you'd be," the boy said with a grin.

Zoë ignored him. "Since you know my name, who are you?" she asked.

"I'm Yolei," she said. Yolei pointed to the brown haired boy. "And that's Takuya Kanbara." Her voice was full of annoyance when she introduced Takuya.

Someone walked in. "Hey, everybody. Ah, I see you met our new helper here."

"Hi, Dr. Kido!"

"Hey, Kido!"

Zoë turned around to see a man in his mid twenties with short blue hair and was wearing a doctor's coat instead of scrubs like she was. He walked up to her and held out his hand. "I'm Joe Kido, Yolei's, Takuya's, and Kari's doctor," he introduced himself, shaking Zoe's hand.

"How's everyone feeling?" he asked the others, walking past Zoë.

"I've been better, but Takuya here won't keep quite!" Yolei hissed pointing her finger at Takuya.

"I can't help that's there's nothing on the TV and I don't have any more batteries for my MP3 player," Takuya fired back. "Besides, I don't want to hear you snore."

"Me, snore? Ha! You snore louder than I do!" Yolei taunted. The two glared at each other.

"Now, now." Dr. Kido got in between them. "I'll ask a nurse to bring some more batteries, as long as you pay her back."

Takuya held up his hands. "Of course, Kido," he replied.

"Thank you, Dr. Kido," said Yolei with relief.

Dr. Kido turned to face Zoë. "Around this time, Yolei and Takuya have some physical therapy. Some days I may not be able to come here and help them get there, so if I'm late, can you help them get there?" he asked.

Zoë shrugged.

Takuya reached for crutches that leaned next to his bed and used them to hoist himself up with them. Dr. Kido rolled a wheel chair that was tucked in a corner and helped Yolei into it and the two were on their way.

Dr. Kido stayed back and began to talk about the three kids. "Yolei and Takuya can barely stand each other, so if a fight almost begins, try to stop it before it becomes an argument. It's best to root out the problem and then try to please both sides once you know both sides of the story," he advised her.

"What about that little girl?" asked Zoë. "Kari? Anything I should know about her?"

"Kari?" Dr. Kido replied. "Well, she likes cats. Try not to mention anything about illnesses. Kari may have some sort of illness that could be life threatening. Just don't mention it and you'll be fine." The doctor's pager suddenly beeped. He checked it and put it back on his belt. "In about an hour, go to the physical therapy area to pick the others up on the third floor," he said before rushing to the elevator.

Zoë watched him go and walked back into Kari's room. Kari looked up and smiled up at her. Zoë smiled back. She was unsure of how to start the conversation. "So . . . how are you feeling?" she asked.

"Fine, thank you," replied Kari.

"Is there anything you want to do?"

Kari shrugged. Zoë thought for a moment. _What would a six year old like to do?_ Zoë sat in the chair next to her bed. "So, Kari, since I'm going to be here for the next few months, why don't you tell me about yourself? Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

Kari nodded. "I have an older brother named Tai. He comes to visit me everyday with his girlfriend and best friend and my friend and my mama and papa," she replied.

"You have quite a lot of visitors," Zoë said. Kari nodded.

The two talked for an hour, talking about Kari. From this, Zoë found out that Kari not only loved cats, but had a white kitten named Gato after her old cat died that was named Meiko. She also learned that Kari loved stories of angels and the average fairy tales.

The hour past quickly. Zoë stood up and said, "I need to go get the others." She said a quick goodbye and made her way to the elevator at the end of the hall. As she past, she noticed a familiar face: a boy with messy brown hair and brown eyes. Zoë stopped and looked at him. A great feeling of guilt filled her. It had been the boy that had called 911 for his girlfriend. He had been at the trail, hoping to see justice be dealt. Zoë had an urge to follow him and see the girl that had been hurt but she was too scared to face it and continued towards the elevator and headed towards the third floor.

The elevator dropped Zoë off at the third floor's hallway. She walked passed several doctors and went into the door on the right that opened to a huge room with elliptical machines and long poles that people were using to help them walk while holding them up.

Yolei was using one but she couldn't even get herself across it and dropped to the ground. Zoë walked over to her and offered her a hand. Yolei gratefully took it. Zoë had Yolei lean against a pole while she went to get her wheel chair. She pushed it over towards Takuya. "Hey, time to go back to your room," Zoë said.

Takuya groaned. "Five minutes," he said.

Zoë shook her head. "Sorry, Doctor's orders."

"More like Lady Pissy's orders," muttered Takuya.

Zoë folded her arms. "Look, don't give me trouble and I won't give you trouble, deal?" she asked.

Takuya groaned again. He reached the end of the poles and began struggling for the other wall where his crutches were at. He fell after getting a few feet.

"Here, let me help," Zoë said. She walked over to get them for him and walked back and offered him and hand up.

Takuya frowned and hesitated but took her hand and his crutches. "I didn't really need help," he muttered.

Zoë giggled. "Right," she said sarcastically. Takuya couldn't help but crack a grin.

"Let's go!" shouted Yolei enthusiastically as Zoë began pushing her wheelchair back to their room. She helped Yolei into her bed. Yolei grabbed a book from the table between them and cracked it open. Zoë put the wheelchair in the corner. Takuya sunk into the bed and laid the crutches against the head of the bed.

Zoë went across the hall to check up on Kari, who was having some visitors at the moment; about three to be exact. One was an eighteen year old with wild brown hair. A strawberry blonde stood next to him and a six year old boy wearing green with blonde hair was sitting in the chair. They all were talking and didn't seem to notice Zoë come in the door way and then step out.

She went into Takuya's and Yolei's room. Yolei was reading not minding anything while Takuya was strumming an air guitar and jamming out to some music. Zoë walked over and sat between them.

Takuya was the first to notice her and pulled out an ear bud. "Bored?" he asked. Zoë shrugged.

"Well, what are you here for? I know it isn't because you want to," Takuya said.

"How-?" Zoë began but was cut off.

"Kido told us that two new 'volunteers' were going to work here for the summer and he did mention an accident and trouble," Takuya said.

"Court order," Zoë replied.

"What'd you do?" Takuya asked, turning off his MP3 player to listen to Zoë.

"It was more of what I _had _to do. I had a gun to my face when a fellow _worker_ here was drunk and she made me drive a car and crash into stuff and a whole bunch of other stuff I would not like to talk about," she replied. "What about you? Why are you in here?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" he said, putting his hands behind his head and winked at her with a wide mischievous grin. Zoë frowned at him.

Dr. Kido came into the room sometime later to do his rounds. "Everything going alright in here?" he asked.

They nodded. Dr. Kido turned to Zoë. "You're free to go home now," he said. "Go see Izzy at the front desk and have him sign the papers. I expect to see you here the same time tomorrow." Zoë thanked him and headed back to Kari's room to pick up her clothes that she had put on the bathroom door's handle and say bye to Kari but Kari was fast asleep and the three visitors were still there. They looked up at her.

"So, you must be the volunteer worker that's helping my sister," the brown haired boy said. "I'm Tai, her older brother. This is Mimi and TK."

"Hi," Mimi said. "It's very nice to see her getting some more friends since she came to the hospital."

TK looked up at her and smiled. Zoë smiled back. "Well, I have to get going," Zoë said. "I'm pretty sure I'll be seeing more of you through out the summer." She waved at them and left.

Carrying her clothes in her bag, she went to the ground floor and had Izzy sign her papers. Then she got up the courage to ask, "Was there a girl about my age that was sent here on the sixth during the night because of a mugging that gets a brown haired boy about my age for a visitor?" she asked.

Izzy nodded. "Yeah," he replied. "He actually left a half hour ago."

"Can you tell me her room number?" she asked.

"I guess I could, but you can't visit her now," Izzy said.

"Well, can you tell me her name?"

"Jeri Katou."

Zoë remembered the name. Jeri had been a girl in her grade that was quite known among the boys as being a nice girl and helping those who seek her help. Jeri didn't deserve what she got.

Then who was the boy? Zoë didn't know his name as she had never seen him before the accident. She'd eventually find out and apologize, if she could ever muster up the courage, that is.

Zoë began heading towards the parking lot and waited for her parents to pick her up.

"Don't you look good in your scrubs, Orimoto," said a disgusted voice. Zoë turned to see Rin Yagami walking out of the hospital in a janitor's uniform. Zoë could barely stifle a laugh. Rin glared at her.

"So, have you seen that girl yet?" asked Rin.

"That girl?"

"The one I beat," she said. No guilt could be heard in her voice. She cackled. "Man, did I mess her up!"

"You think that's funny?" shot Zoë. "Have you seen the boy since the assault? He's mad and sad! How is that funny?"

Rin stopped laughing. "I hate this place," she groaned. "I'm stuck helping a brat and a girl that talks back. The next thing I know, I'm stuck doing janitor's duties. I especially hate that janitor."

Zoe's parents eventually pulled up to the hospital. Zoë got in immediately, relieved to get away from Rin. "So, how was your first day?" asked Mrs. Orimoto.

"Not too bad," she said. "I actually met some people that seem okay." Zoë began telling her mother about Takuya, Kari, and Yolei but made sure not to mention the talk with Rin and seeing the boy. "It turns out that Rin is now doing janitor duties."

Mrs. Orimoto laughed. "I hope that girl is given a hard time after what she did to you and that poor girl."

Zoë looked down. "Yeah," she agreed quietly.

**Okay, chapter 2 is done and we now know the majority of the cast. More will appear in it soon. I kinda feel sorry for Yolei in this, since she has to share the same room as Takuya. Rin is going to get it from the janitor, just like JD gets tormented by the nameless janitor in **_**Scrubs**_**.**

**Oh! I forgot to mention this in the last chapter: **_**I don't support under aged drinking.**_** Anyway: R&R!**


	3. Chapter 3: Tell Tales

**Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. I will never own it.**

**Chapter 3: Tell Tales**

Zoe walked into the hospital the next day in her scrubs and checked in with Izzy. Before she walked off to check in with Kari, Takuya, and Yolei, Izzy stopped her. "If you want, you can go see her now," he told her.

"Huh?" asked Zoe.

"The girl you asked about yesterday," Izzy reminded her. "Jeri Katou."

Zoe froze up. "Oh," she said. "I have to go check in with Dr. Kido."

Izzy smiled. "Don't worry, I think Joe would understand," he said. Izzy told her the room number and Zoe walked off stiffly towards the elevator. She honestly didn't want to see Jeri. It had been slightly her fault that she was injured. She pressed the button for the third floor.

Zoe walked to Kari's room first to say hi but Kari was still fast asleep so she went over to Takuya's and Yolei's room. Takuya was fast asleep just as Kari was in the other room but Yolei had been right, he did snore pretty loud. Unfortunately, Yolei was covering her years. Her pillow lay on top of Takuya's head. Zoe walked over to them and Yolei looked up at her.

"Oh, thank God you're here!" she said thankfully. "Can you help me wake him up? I can't believe he hasn't woken up from all of my shouting!"

Zoe nodded with a small smile. She walked over to Takuya and shook him gently but then it grew violently and she shouted for him to wake up but Takuya was still out cold. Fed up with that not working, Zoe walked over to Yolei's empty breakfast tray and grabbed the empty glass. She went into the bathroom and turned on the tap water to cold and waited several minutes for it to become ice cold and filled the cup and returned to Takuya.

"Hey, Takuya, if you're half awake, this is your final warning to wake up," Zoe warned him but Takuya kept snoring. Zoe sighed and poured the ice cold water on his head.

Takuya jolted up. "That's cold!" he yelled. He turned to see Zoe holding the empty water glass upside down with an annoyed look on her face. "Flipping heck! What was that for?"

"Snoring like a banshee!" Yolei replied. "Jez, you could sleep through a storm and wake a sleeping dog with your snore!"

Takuya glared at the fourteen year old and she glared back. Takuya turned towards Zoe and jabbed his finger at her. "And you! Why did you pour that water on me?"

"To wake you up," Zoe replied. "You wouldn't wake up."

"Well, I-!" Takuya was about to snap something back when Dr. Kido walked into the room and said, "How's everyone today?" He quickly sensed the atmosphere and shook his head.

"Come on, guys," Dr. Kido said. "This is no time to fight." He noticed Takuya's head that was dripping wet and Zoe holding the water glass. The doctor shook his head again. "Well, time for physical therapy," he announced.

Takuya grabbed his crutches and Zoe went to help Yolei get into her wheel chair. They went on their way towards the elevator and Zoe went out of the room but was cut off by Dr. Kido who pulled her back into the room and shut the door. He turned to Zoe. "We just found that Kari has leukemia."

Zoe's eyes widened with sadness. "What?" she asked. "Does her family know this?"

Dr. Kido nodded. "But Kari doesn't yet."

"I'd better go-," Zoe began turning the knob but Dr. Kido put his hand on the door and pushed it close.

"Kari's parents have strictly told me not to tell her. I need you to promise not to tell her either," Dr. Kido said.

Zoe looked down at her feet. Kari had every right to know but then again, she'd probably be depressed and scared that she'd die. Zoe dropped her hand from the knob and closed her eyes as she exhaled. "I won't tell her," Zoe promised.

Dr. Kido smiled and opened the door. "I know that it's hard to think about it but we have to go by her parents' words. Most of the time, parents know what's better for their children," he said.

"This could be one of those times," Zoe murmured. "that this isn't the case."

The two walked out of the room. "If you want to do some more exploring, feel free to since Kari's still asleep," Dr. Kido said before walking off.

Zoe didn't know where to go so she just began walking around the west wing. The room number that Izzy had told her burned in her mind. _I guess it wouldn't hurt,_ she decided walking to the second floor and going down the hall to the last room. Zoe slowly opened the door and walked in. The room was occupied by one girl that was around her age with long dark brown hair that was fast asleep. She had bandages along her exposed arms and wore a breathing mask. A sudden guilty feeling overwhelmed her and Zoe bowed her head.

"Here to visit Jeri?" asked a male voice behind her. Zoe jumped and turned to see a doctor come in. He looked a lot like Dr. Kido but his hair was darker.

Zoe shook her head. "I-I was just seeing who this was," she said in a rushed voice. "I need to get going." Zoe rushed out the door and past the doctor and went to check in with Kari, who was still fast asleep so she went to see the two other patients in the other room that were still up in the upper floor.

Takuya was the first to notice her come in. "It's early!" he complained.

"I'm not here to bring you guys back yet," Zoe said. "I just wanted to see you guys."

Yolei saw how troubled she was and struggled to get to her wheel chair and ended up having Zoe help her. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"It's nothing really," Zoe replied. "I just am having a hard time."

"Guilty?" asked Yolei.

"How can you tell?"

Yolei gave Zoe a grin. "I know that look all too well, trust me. So what is it?"

"Well, I went to see someone in the hospital that was harmed; it was partly my fault in the first place," she said.

Yolei frowned. "Forget about it," she said. "If it happened, it happened. 'Can't change the past.' I've been telling my boyfriend that for the past several weeks. He's constantly blaming himself because of my injury."

Zoe looked at her, this time giving her the questioning look. "We were going horse back riding not too far from here and he went out as I was putting my horse away. When he came in to see if I needed help, he accidentally made a loud noise and that spooked the horse," Yolei explained. "A week later, I wake up in the hospital and find myself sharing a room with that bucket of snores." The two girls laughed.

Takuya heard the insult and glared back at them. A little blush could be seen on his face. "What about you Takuya? How'd you end up in the hospital?" Zoe asked.

"Well, let me tell you," he said matter-of-factly. "Our house was burning down and we had all made it out alright except my younger brother Shinya who was trapped upstairs so I went to help him and he ran out of the before me with some light burns. When I was nearly out, I got trapped under a board that landed on me and the fire managed to get my legs and burn them decently. That was about a month before she came here."

"Well, aren't you the hero that got burned in the end," Zoe teased. Takuya blushed slightly.

"So, what'd the doc hold you back for?" asked Takuya. He began trying to get over to his crutches but only got three fourths of the way. Zoe got up and helped him.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"The doc held you back for something," Takuya repeated. "What was it?"

"Well," Zoe paused. "It really isn't your business."

"I'm sorry, but I got nothing else to do but listen. So what is it?"

Zoe sighed. "The girl across from you guys, you know who she is right? Kari?" Yolei and Takuya nodded. "Well, it turns out that she has leukemia."

"Oh man," Takuya said sadly. "That sucks."

"Does she know?" asked Yolei.

Zoe shook her head. "Dr. Kido said that her parents don't want her to know."

"What? That's total hog wash!" Takuya cursed. "She has every right to know."

"Yeah, but she also has every right to not worry," Zoe countered.

"Still, you should tell her," the burn patient said.

Zoe frowned. "I can't, I promised! Now you guys have to promise," Zoe demanded. "You have to promise not to tell Kari."

Yolei was the first one to promise. Takuya on the other hand was reluctant. "Do it," Zoe said in a low and threatening voice. Takuya gave her the eye but finally broke down and promised. Zoe smiled. "Well, let's get going since you both are ready," she said.

Takuya nearly began complaining but the two girls began to leave without him and so he was forced to follow. They began walking towards the elevator when they saw two people- one a blonde haired teen and an older janitor in his mid thirties- Zoe stopped in her tracks. The janitor was sitting on a chair and the blonde haired girl (that she recognized as Rin) was on the floor scrubbing away with a tooth brush in her hand. "Having a fun time?" asked the janitor.

Zoe heard the low grumble form Rin and tried not to laugh too loudly. "What is it?" asked Yolei and Takuya but Zoe had made them continue on before Rin could notice them.

"What is it?" Yolei and Takuya repeated the question once they were in the elevator. Zoe explained about the girl known as Rin and they too cracked a smile. The three went to check on Kari, who was now awake. "Hey, Kari," Zoe greeted her.

"Hi, Zoe," Kari replied with a small smile.

"Hi, Kari," Yolei greeted her.

"What's up?" asked Takuya.

They all began chatting for a good hour but then Dr. Kido came in and said that Zoe could go. Zoe nodded and helped the two back to their rooms and said goodbye. As she waited for her parents to pick her up, she had an idea to bring Kari something. She checked her pockets and checked how much money she had.

**Alright, well, chapter three is done. More characters are going to be introduced next chapter. The reason why Yolei was in the hospital is based on **_**Smallville **_**when Lana had to be in the hospital in season 2 (I think). The reason why Takuya was in the hospital is a mixture of **_**Smallville**_** and a **_**Scrubs**_** patient who had nasty burns. Next chapter should be ready about Friday! R&R, please!**


	4. Chapter 4: Bruises

**Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. I will never own it.**

**Chapter 4: Bruises**

Zoe came in later than she had planned the following week. She rushed into the hospital after sleeping in late thanks to her mother making her do chores late into the night. "Hi, Izzy. Bye, Izzy!" she said running past him and up to the third floor. Zoe stopped to check in with Yolei and Takuya first but they were already gone. Zoe sighed and went to check up on Kari.

"Hey, Kari," she said. Kari smiled up at her. Kari hugged the white kitten doll that Zoe had given her the week before. Kari's friend, TK had taken a seat near Kari's bed. Zoe turned her attention towards the other occupied bed. "Hey, Koichi," she said to the dark haired boy with bandages over his eyes and on arms. The dark haired boy said hi back.

"You're late," complained Takuya. He was in a chair by Koichi's bed.

Zoe rolled her eyes. "It isn't my fault that my mom makes me work late on chores," she retorted. She looked around and noticed Yolei wasn't in the room. "Where's Yolei? She was the one who wanted to watch it the most."

"Ms. Crabby is in the other room with her _boyfriend,_" he said, adding a teasing tone to his voice near the end of the sentence. Zoe rolled her eyes again. She popped in the tape from the recorded show that she found out all of them liked and slipped out of the room. She carefully walked over to Yolei's room and was about to knock on the door when she heard speaking.

"I wasn't thinki-," came a male voice.

"No! I know you're lying! Don't deny it, Ken!" shouted Yolei angrily. "It's not your fault. Why can't you get over that?"

"I-I," Ken stuttered but was cut off by Yolei.

"I don't want to hear excuses or anymore apologies!"

"But it is my-!" _SMACK!_

Zoe opened the door quickly. Yolei's hand was finished an arc movement. Her face was red and tears streamed down her face. The boy's (who's back that was turned to her) own hand rested against one of his cheeks. Zoe didn't need to ask what had happened. It was pretty simple that Yolei smacked him. Yolei hadn't acted out _this_ bad, though.

There was a long awkward silence. So Zoe slowly backed out of the room and shut the door behind her. She walked back into the other room. At the moment the recording was settled on the opening scenes. "What is taking her?" demanded Takuya. "Kari won't let us start without her."

"She's . . . busy," Zoe explained. "We'll fill her in when she gets over here."

"You heard her! Start it up!"

"You have the remote, dummy." Zoe pointed to the remote. Takuya gave her a big embarrassed grin and pressed play.

**--**

Yolei never did come into the room to see the recording. Takuya was curious as all heck but Zoe scolded him when he tried to ask Yolei. "I'm fine, Zoe!" she shouted. She wheeled her wheelchair over to her bed and struggled into it. Ken was in the back of the room and standing there with a shadow over his face and the red mark still on his face. Zoe went to help her but Yolei swatted her assistance away.

Zoe backed away and turned her attention towards the both of them. "Anything you guys need?" she asked. Takuya shook his head and Yolei stayed bitterly quiet. "I'll be in the other room then." She walked out of the room and into the one where Koichi and Kari were. While she had been in the other room, Kari's sibling and his friend were visiting Kari so she went to Koichi. "Everything alright here?" she asked.

Koichi nodded. "Yeah," he replied. "I was wondering if you could help me with something."

Zoe looked down at him. "What?" she asked.

"I have a brother but he has forbid me to see him. I was wondering if you could help me write a letter to him and send it to him," he asked. "It's kind of hard to do it when your blind and have scars and burns on your arms."

"Yeah, sure," she answered in a confused voice. "But who's 'he'? Your father?"

"No," Koichi replied. "The guy who did this to me." He became quiet and tilted his head down towards his hands.

Zoe was still confused but also angry. "He must be sick," she hissed. Koichi stayed quiet so Zoe began looking for an unused piece of paper and working pen. As she helped Koichi, the incomplete conversation nagged in the back of her mind.

"That's it?" she double-checked. Koichi nodded. "So, where does your brother live?" she asked. He told her the address and she quickly wrote it down. She got up to leave just as Dr. Kido told her she was good to leave. Zoe turned back to Koichi and said with a smile, "If you need to talk to anyone, feel free to ask."

Zoe left and made her way down to the elevator when she almost ran into a brown haired boy. She nearly choked on her own breath when she recognized it as the boy from the trial and the boy that had been with Jeri when she was beaten by the drunk Rin. The boy also recognized her and gave her such a death glare that it sent shivers down Zoe's spin.

"Hey, Takato, what's with you?" asked a girl with short brown hair up in a ponytail. In her hands was a banquet of flowers.

"I've never seen you so amped like this," said a second boy with darker hair.

"Nothing," replied Takato to the two others icily. "Rika, Henry, let's go." Takato walked off. Rika sighed and followed him but Henry turned to Zoe.

"Sorry about him," he said. "He's been rather wound up since his girlfriend got mugged by a drunken girl and a second one driving off." An "oh" was all Zoe could manage. Henry left and Zoe watched him go. Zoe stood there for a minute and then ran off to Jeri's room. She looked into the glass window that was next to the door. The doctor that had attended Jeri stood outside the window.

"Oh, it's you from last week," said the doctor. "Here to visit Jeri again?"

Zoe shook her head. "No, I'm just here to see how she was doing," she said. "That's it." Zoe watched the three friends sit and talk to the comatose Jeri. Guilt still filled her and her eyes began to water slightly.

"Oh, look who it is," gripped the familiar voice of Rin. She walked over to them, smelling of chemicals and cleaning supplies. "Seeing our comatasa victim?"

"Comatose," corrected the doctor. Rin rolled her eyes and jabbed her finger at Zoe.

"Get over it," she said. "That _chick_ dared to be in my way and that's what happened."

Anger flared in Zoe. "Don't you regret?" Zoe asked. Rin laughed like Zoe had just told a funny joke. At that moment, Zoe just snapped. The next thing Rin knew, she was knocked to the ground and was clutching her eyes.

"What the-?" She glared up at Zoe. The doctor grabbed Zoe roughly and began dragging her away from the site.

"What do you think you're doing?" demanded Jeri's doctor. "You can't hit volunteers here."

"_She_ is the reason why Jeri's in the hospital! She's the one who beat Jeri Katou and put her into a coma and she doesn't regret it!" shouted Zoe angrily. "She deserves what she got and a thousand more from that girl and her friends!"

"Get out, now before I call security." The doctor pushed her down the hall and Zoe didn't object. She continued walking with her fists clenched. The crinkle of paper reminded her of Koichi's letter she was to deliver for him and she put it in her pocket. Zoe no longer felt guilty of what she had done, since it was no longer her fault. It was all Rin Yagami.

**--**

Zoe debated to take the letter straight to Koichi's brother. According to the address Koichi gave her, he didn't live too far from her. It would only be a thirty minutes to get there so she got dressed and took her bike down to the south part of the neighbor hood. It actually took her longer than she had thought but she eventually made it to a white two story house.

She got off of the bike and rested it against the wooden fence and slowly approached the door. She knocked on the door and waited a few minutes. A dark haired woman with short hair answered the door. "Hello?" she asked.

"Hi," Zoe said. "Um, is a Koji Minamoto here?"

The woman smiled at her and shook her head. "He's out right now." Then she half whispered to herself, "I can't believe he has a friend that's a girl."

"Uh, I'm just here to deliver this," Zoe said. "I don't know Koji but I do know his brother."

The dark haired woman half-flinched when she mentioned Koichi. "What happened to Koichi?" she asked in a concerned voice. Zoe told her about how Koichi was in the hospital and of his injuries.

"I have no idea who did it to him though but he did mention a 'he' that wasn't his father," she said. "Do you know who might have done it?"

Mrs. Minamoto came outside and shut the door behind her. "He must have been Tomoko's boyfriend," she explained.

"Tomoko? Is that Koichi's mother?" she asked.

"And Koji's. Tomoko had to go out of town last month. Koji kept saying how much of a bad man he was and I heard Koji and Koichi arguing upstairs about it the week before. I never thought much of it at first, but I guess some people are just like that," Mrs. Minamoto sighed.

"So, Koichi was abused by his mother's boyfriend? Why didn't he speak up?" Zoe fumed. "He should have-!"

The sound of a gate cut off their conversation. A sixteen year old teen entered the yard. "Satomi, who's that?" he asked his stepmother.

"Koji," she began. She walked over to him and told him what Zoe had told her.

"What?" demanded Koji angrily. He dropped his backpack and began turning around but Zoe stopped him.

"Um, I have something for you," she said hesitantly. She walked over to him and handed him the letter. "It's from Koichi."

"How do you know him?"

"I'm a volunteer at the hospital he's staying at," Zoe replied. After a small silence, she turned to leave and grabbed her bike and began riding home. _Why would Koichi not speak up?_ she thought.

**Well, that's it for this chapter. Expect the next one to be longer. (Hopefully.) Hmm. Well, Rin got what was coming and much more! See ya next Friday! R&R please! :D**


	5. Chapter 5: Fight

**Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. I will never own it.**

**Chapter 5: Fight**

The next day, Zoe walked into the hospital with some treats. It had been a rainy day. She checked in with Izzy like she always did. She walked into the room and checked with Kari and Koichi then Takuya and Yolei. Takuya and Yolei were watching the TV and it was on the news.

"In other news, the infamous Dan 'The Mortician' Hunt has escaped from the residential jail after being sentenced to death row and is heading towards Port Osham," said the news announcer.

"Port Osham? That's only an hour away," Zoe said in a worried voice.

"Pfft! Come on, Zoe," Takuya chortled. "There's no way in heck he'd come this way to a flippin' hospital." Yolei and Zoe glared at him. "What? If he even came here and did anything to _you_, I'd make sure nothing would happen."

"Yeah, with those scared legs," Zoe laughed.

"Hey, I'm out of here in two months as long as my legs don't get infected."

"But what you said," Yolei said. "Would you be willing to give up your life for Zoe?"

Takuya nodded without hesitation. "Why the heck not? She's an amazing girl," he said. There was an awkward silence. Takuya flushed three shades of red and Zoe did five. Yolei gave the two teens a smirk and began to call them the "love birds".

"Who's the love birds?" asked a small boy with brown hair. He spotted Takuya and ran over to him. "Takuya!"

"Shinya!" shouted Takuya. He hugged his brother.

Shinya let go of his brother after several seconds and turned to look at the blonde. "Who's that? Your girlfriend?" he asked his big brother. The two turned bright red again and then denied it. Shinya grinned. "Well, Takuya's nuts about video games, but his favorite is a Bratz game."

Takuya karate chopped his little brother's head. "Don't make up stupid stuff!"

Shinya began to cry and that's when his parents came into the room. "Takuya, what did you do to your little brother?" demanded his mother.

"He began lying about stuff to Zoe and-!" Takuya began but was silenced by a glare from his mother.

"Zoe?" asked his father. He looked at Zoe and smiled. "Hi, I'm Hiroaki Kanbara, Takuya's father."

"Zoe Orimoto," she replied, shaking his hand.

"So, I see you and Takuya know each other," Hiroaki said. "How long have you known each other?"

"Since Zoe came here earlier this summer," replied Takuya.

"Well, that's nice," Mrs. Kanbara said. "I'm so glad you could find yourself a girlfriend. Even after the terrible accident and in a hospital of all places!"

"Girlfriend?" the two said unanimously. "I'm not going out with him/her!" The two pointed at each other.

"Oh," Mrs. Kanbara said. "But you two seem like it."

"Takuya never shuts up about it when you guys come over," Yolei butted in. Shinya gave the lavender haired girl a big grin and Takuya shot her a dirty look.

"You do?" Zoe asked.

"Eh, well-," Takuya began but was cut off when Tai stormed in.

"Zoe Orimoto?" he asked in a livid voice. He looked as if he would strangle anyone who got in his way. Mimi followed behind him with a worried expression. Everyone looked at the furious brunet. "Why did you tell my sister she had cancer?" he demanded.

"What?" Zoe asked. "Kari doesn't know though!"

"Then why is she depressed? Why did she asked if she was going to survive leukemia?!" he demanded as he jabbed his finger towards the other room. Mimi put a hand on his shoulder but he shook it off furiously.

"I didn't tell her!" Zoe shouted back.

"Then who did?"

Zoe looked at Yolei but she held up her hands in innocence. "I didn't say anything to her!" she claimed. Then it all clicked into place. Zoe turned her head towards Takuya.

"Takuya, please tell me you didn't," she pleaded.

Takuya sighed. "She needed to know," Takuya said.

"What?" Tai asked in a dangerously calm voice.

"But you promised! You promised that you wouldn't tell her!" Zoe shouted angrily.

"She was going to find out anyway!" Takuya shouted back.

"But you took away her childhood and her happiness!"

"She already lost it when she got it," Takuya yelled. "You think being in a hospital is a child's life? She was going to find out before she died anyway!"

Angry tears filled her eyes. "Takuya, you stupid, stupid, stupid idiot!" she shrieked. She slapped him hard and ran past Tai and Mimi and down the hall.

Tai watched her go and turned to face Takuya. "Why?" he demanded quietly before marching off. The glare that the boy had given him sent chills down his spine.

Mimi watched him go and turned to the others. "I'm sorry about Tai, he's kind of touchy about stuff like this," she apologized and left after him.

Yolei glared at Takuya. "Smooth, real smooth," she said darkly.

"Aw, come on, Yolei," said Takuya. "She was going to find out anyway."

Yolei didn't respond and helped herself into the wheel chair and began heading out the door.

**--**

Zoe ran down the hall and found herself at Jeri's room. She looked into the window and saw that Takato and his friends were in the room and saw that Jeri was sitting up and everyone in the room had happy expressions. Zoe's eyes widened in surprise. _At least something good happened today,_ Zoe thought. She quietly opened the door and stepped in.

The four turned to look at the new comer. Takato glared at her. Jeri gave her a curious look. Henry had a small smile. Rika had an indifferent look. "Hello," Zoe said as she forced a smile.

"Hi," Jeri said. "Do I know you?"

"Probably not," Zoe replied. "I'm Zoe Orimoto. We go to the same school."

"Oh" was all Jeri could say. "I guess you're here since you heard about the accident." Zoe nodded.

"Do you remember anything she asked?"

Jeri was about to answer when Takato stood up abruptly and began yelling. "Don't make her try to remember that!" he shouted.

Jeri put a hand on Takato's arm. Takato sat down and Jeri turned back towards Zoe. "Sort of," Jeri said, she seemed unfazed by remembering but Zoe was sure she was hurting inside. "All I remember is that I was walking with Takato before I felt a bottle smashed over my head and jabs of pain before going unconscious."

Zoe walked closer. "Do you know who jumped you?" she asked. Jeri shook her head. Zoe sighed. Jeri didn't know that it was Rin and she was driving the get-away-car.

"Do you want to know?" she asked. Takato glared at Zoe but she kept her look towards Jeri.

"You know it?" she asked.

Zoe nodded. "I was there in the get-away car."

Henry and Jeri gave her an astonished look. Rika asked for her to start from the beginning but Takato said he didn't want to hear it again. Rika glared at the boy and said firmly, "She's willing to come clean, so let's listen." Takato sat back down reluctantly.

And Zoe began from the beginning.

**Sorry for the break off here, but I have to for now. This once again was inspired by an episode from **_**Scrubs**_** where a young patient came in and had cancer and his parents didn't want to tell him and Dr. Cocks went against it. After this chapter, the rating may jump up to T just to be safe because of the upcoming chapters. So, R&R please!**


	6. Chapter 6: Forgiveness

**Please note this is now rated T for the stuff that's happening in the next chapters!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon, Chrysler, or Bratz. I will never own them.**

**Chapter 6: Forgiveness**

Zoe looked back on the fateful night. It was the night of the last day of school. It had been long school year and the older students found that it should be celebrated with beer, loud music, and dancing into the night until the butt crack of dawn. Flyers for the end of the year bash were passed out during school and the location just happened to be next to Zoe's house.

Zoe's mother and father were coming home late from work. Zoe's mother just happened to get there first and began to fix dinner when she noticed that there wasn't enough noodles for the soup she was making.

"I'll get it," she said. Zoe's mother gave her twenty dollars to get enough noodles from the small mart down the street. Zoe grabbed her cell phone and pocketed them and began heading outside. It was cloudless and a warm night in the town. A small breeze could be felt running past her. Zoe stretched her arms out and felt it pass by. After a few seconds she began walking down the street when she heard some footsteps behind her.

Zoe whipped around to see the drunken Rin walking over to her with a beer bottle and a pack of beer in her hands. "Hey, blonde," she slurred.

"Rin, you're drunk, so go back into the house before I call 911 and say that a party's going on next door with loud music and alcohol being passed out to minors," she threatened. Rin ignored her threat and walked closer. Zoe made good on her threat and pulled out the phone and quickly dialed 911 but before she could even press the green button, she heard a click and saw a gun pointed at her.

"Now drop the phone," Rin commanded in her stupor. Zoe did as she said and tried to keep herself calm. She put the phone down slowly, fearful that too sudden of a move would tempt Rin to snuff out her life. "Let's go for a walk," she said.

Zoe stayed where she was but Rin shoved the gun in her face and used fear to move her forwards. Rin made her walk down the street to a gold Chrysler. She set down the 6-pack of beer and fumbled for some keys. "Drive," she commanded.

Zoe shook her head. "N-no thanks," she stuttered.

"TAKE THE DAMN KEYS!" she shouted, shoving the gun in her face. Zoe trembled and took the keys in shaky hands. She turned around and unlocked the car and opened it and stepped out of the way. "What the hell do you think your doing?" asked Rin in a silly but threatening manor.

"Y-you wanted the c-car right? Here it is," Zoe stuttered extending the keys for her.

Rin laughed and swayed. "M-me take the car?" she laughed, keeping the gun pointed at her. "You're driving. Get in.~"

Zoe would have pushed her away but with the gun in Rin's hands, Zoe saw that she didn't have much of a choice to say no and keep her life. Zoe slide into the driver's seat and Rin closed the door. Rin held the gun to her face and demanded Zoe start the car. Zoe did and began driving slowly.

"Go faster," she demanded in a drunken slur. She swayed every which way as Zoe sped up a bit more. She turned on some rap music and began banging away and took a sip of beer from the bottle she had with her. They kept driving for several minutes.

Suddenly Rin grabbed the wheel. "Let meeeeeeee," she slurred and jerked the wheel sideways. Zoe lost control of the wheel and they crashed into a porch. Rin lost the grip of it so Zoe grabbed the wheel and turned sharply back into the direction of the street after hitting the backs of several cars.

"What was that?!" demanded Zoe but quickly shutted up when the gun was pointed back into her face.

"Speed up," she demanded. Zoe sped up a little more. She managed to stay under the speed limit.

Rin looked out the window and saw two figures walking from a car up to a house. They were only a few feet away from the car. Rin made Zoe stop and she pointed the gun at her head. "Try anything funny and you'll get it," she laughed cruelly. Rin got out of the car and made her way up to the couple. Zoe quickly recognized one of them as a girl as Jeri Katou.

There was shouting and a gunshot. Zoe watched in horror as she saw the beer bottle smashed over the girl's head. She began to kick her and bash her with the gun. When the boy ran over to help her out Rin pointed the gun at him, which made him stop in his tracks. Zoe could hear Rin laugh as she nearly fell over as she backed into the car.

Rin got in and pointed the gun back at her. "Wasn't that fun?" she asked in a sickening playful tone. Zoe shook her head fearfully. Rin made her drive the car again and they came into the up part of the community. Rin made several stops and vandalized the area and made Zoe drive again.

On a stop at a house with a nice looking yard, Rin made Zoe come with her and began tearing up the yard. She pointed the gun at Zoe and Zoe did as she commanded with fearful tears. _Please make this end,_ she wished to some sort of higher power.

When they were done Rin walked Zoe to the car with the gun pointed to her back. "Get into the car!" she commanded.

"No! I-!" Zoe began but was reminded of the gun to her back.

Click. "Get in!" Zoe obeyed.

The car zoomed down the street. "Faster!" Rin screeched.

"I can't I'll get-!"

Click! "Do it!"

"But-." Neither of them had been paying attention to the street. Zoe had her eyes fearfully on the gun and Rin had a hard glare on Zoe. Out of no where a car was pulling out of the street and- CRASH!

--

That's where Zoe concluded. Jeri's eyes were wide. "Why?" asked Henry.

"I hope that brat gets what he deserves," Rika said, referring to Rin. Takato was glaring at Zoe.

Zoe finally turned to Takato for the first time since she had entered the room. "Look, it isn't my fault that she got drunk or that she had a gun to my head. I'm not here to look for _your_ forgiveness but her to apologize to _Jeri_," Zoe said evenly.

Jeri was quiet for several minutes as Zoe turned to her and said she was sorry. To everyone's astonishment, Jeri smiled and said, "It wasn't your fault, right? You said you had no choice. I would have done the same thing with a gun pointed to my head. I forgive you."

Zoe's eyes nearly bulged at what had just taken place. Takato's mouth was agape but he quickly shut his mouth. Zoe gave her a warm smile. "Thanks," she said.

--

A month had gone by. Zoe felt lighter as if she had finally taken a weight off her shoulders. Though when she saw Takuya every time, Zoe went sour. Takuya and Zoe weren't on talking terms much and steered clear of each other as best they could. On the other hand, Kari became perkier and chatted excitedly when Tai, TK, and Mimi came to visit her and showed her a picture of a new kitten that looked much like the stuffed animal she was given. Yolei and Ken had gotten over their small spat and saw each other everyday. Koji came in to visit his brother every couple of days. On one visit, he came with good news that their biological mother's old boyfriend was behind bars. Everything seemed to only get better.

Zoe came in on a humid July morning. She sat with Kari, Koichi, Yolei, and (much to her surprise) Mimi, TK, Shinya, and Ken all waiting for her. "What's with everyone here?" she asked.

"What's up with you and Takuya?" asked Yolei. "Why can't you get over it?"

Zoe frowned. "He was the idiot that said anything in the first place," Zoe said back. She folded her arms. "I don't want to talk about it."

Kari frowned. "But I really don't mind knowing," Kari said. "I'm actually happy he told me." Zoe looked bewilderly at the young girl.

"It's true," Mimi added. "Kari has been much more talkative since she found out."

"Takuya really likes you," said Shinya and Koichi.

"Takuya wouldn't stop talking about you when we came to visit," Shinya continued. "I find it rather annoying when he wouldn't shut up about it."

Zoe looked away angrily. "It still doesn't change the fact that he screwed up," she said stubbornly.

Yolei sighed. "I can't tell who's more stubborn: you or Takuya. Even he wouldn't let it go," she sighed. "Go in there and make up dang it!"

Zoe ignored Yolei until she said, "Didn't you mess up too?" Zoe looked at her in furious curiosity.

"We all make mistakes," Ken picked up where Yolei left off. "Wouldn't you want to be forgiven and make up a lost relationship?"

Zoe sighed. "I guess your right," she said.

"Then go in there and forgive him before I have to do it for you!" Yolei commanded.

Zoe walked across the hall and saw Takuya sitting in a chair next to his bed. He glared at Zoe. "What do you want now? Here to bust my chops about coming clean?" he asked harshly.

Zoe shook her head. "No, I'm here to say sorry," she said while looking at the other wall. Takuya was taken aback. He stared at her for several minutes and Zoe kept her eyes on the wall.

After several long minutes, she continued. "I'm sorry; it's just that I thought Kari would have been devastated. She's only a kid and knowing that you're sick with something like leukemia must be hard. I acted out of line."

Takuya looked down. "I guess I messed up a bit too," he said. "I act too much without thinking. She did deserve to know and not telling her was bad enough. I just imagined her one day hurting and not knowing why and only finally learning what was killing her when she was on her death bed. I guess my mother's right; I'm too stupid to think sometimes."

"That makes two of us," Zoe agreed. There was a long silence that seemed to calm the mood. Zoe never really thought that Takuya would have been mature enough about forgiveness and that stuff. _I guess there's more to him than just an immature guy with some scared legs_, she thought.

The moment was nice an peaceful, until-

"Kiss and make up!" shouted someone from the door. The two looked back and saw Shinya at the door with everyone else behind him.

"Shinya!" shouted Takuya as he blushed madly.

"Guys!" shouted Zoe who did the same. Takuya grabbed his crutches and the two ran after the laughing gaggle that began running for their lives down the corridor.

**My gosh, another chapter? I'm on a frickin' roll! Next chapter things are going to get interesting.**


	7. Chapter 7: Hostage

**I'm bored, so I'm updating early.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. I will never own it.**

**Chapter 7: Hostage**

The brown hair and green-eyed police officer came in when he got a call from the chief. "Yes, sir?" said the young cop.

"Cody, we've just got a report of a shooting and car jacking in the downtown area of Port Osham an hour ago and one of a B&E with several dead and injured just a few minutes ago," said the chief. "I need you and Junpei to evacuate the area quickly."

Cody frowned. "Do we have any leads?" he asked.

The chief grimaced. "More than a lead," he said solemnly. "We know who it is: Dan 'The Mortician' Hunt."

Officer Cody stiffened. He and Junpei had worked together to bring down the psycho killer only five years before. The Mortician was once part of a mafia that killed an entire street of the residential area in the next city over before they were disbanded after the mafia head was captured. After that, Dan Hunt went to being a murderer and bank robber, always leaving behind something behind with "The Mortician" written on it at the scene of the crime. The two had a hard time trying to take him into to custody but finally did. He was tried and found guilty of several murders and was sentenced to a lifetime in jail. Cody had constantly heard that he wasn't a model citizen in the jail. Dan had constantly started riots and killed several inmates and was finally sentenced to death row.

"How did he escape?" Cody questioned.

The chief shook his head solemnly. "I don't know, but what I do know is that those citizens need to get out of there," he replied.

Cody frowned. Junpei knew a bit more about how this guy worked. Junpei finally came into the office. "Sorry I'm late, sir," he apologized.

The chief let him off with a warning glare. "Dan Hunt?" asked Junpei. The two other officers nodded. Junpei moaned. They filled him in.

"We need to evacuate the area immediately."

Junpei nodded. "How many has he killed so far?" he asked.

"Twelve," replied the chief.

"Then he's going for the area where there are the most people?" asked Junpei.

"St. Martin's Hospital," replied Cody.

--

Zoe came in on a Thursday morning and was nearly running late. She checked in and did everything she normally did. She brought Koichi and Kari with her when she took Takuya and Yolei to physical training and they sat and talked. They returned to Kari's room and popped in the tape of the recording of their favorite show. Ken and Koji came and visited Yolei and Koichi just like any day.

It was about time for Zoe to leave when a frantic Dr. Kido entered the room. "Everyone, we need to get out of here," he said urgently.

Everyone looked at him. "What do you mean?" asked the kids.

He began helping the others out of their beds while explaining. "The Mortician is here," he said frantically. "The hospital has to be evacuated right now." Everyone turned pale and got out of bed and stood up.

He ran out of the room. Koji and Koichi followed first as Koji acted as eyes for his brother. Zoe held Kari's hand and Takuya followed close behind them. Ken pushed Yolei in her wheelchair not too far behind the others. They ran quickly down the hall towards the staircase. They all quickened their paces.

"I can't keep up," Kari said.

"Come on, Kari," Zoe cheered her on quietly. "We're almost there! We can all make it!"

Dr. Kido, Koji, and Koichi were the first ones able to make it to the staircase. Suddenly, a tall man wearing an orange jumper walked in front of them. He was bald and had pale skin. In his hands he held a gun and a blonde haired girl who struggled and shouted curses.

Kari nearly screamed while the others gasped fearfully. "Back into the rooms," he said, pointing the gun at them.

--

The hospital had managed to evacuate without many killed but a few doctors, patients, and visitors in the lobby and in the halls. Officer Junpei and Cody saw- as what they assumed- was the last of the patients had gotten out. A dark haired doctor was followed by two dark haired boys, one with bandages over his eyes and the other one walking quickly in front of him.

Cody and Junpei ran over to them. "Is that everyone?" they asked him.

Dr. Kido was about to answer when several shouts from adults and older kids. At that moment, Dr. Kido looked around. _Where are the others?_ he wondered. Dr. Kido looked behind him to hopefully see the five running across the parking lot but no one came across. He turned towards Koji. "Did you see them behind you?" he asked.

Koji shook his head. "They were right behind us when we were in the halls but I didn't see them coming down the stairs," he said.

"I heard a scream before the door to the emergency staircase closed behind us," added Koichi. Then it hit them all. Kari, Takuya, Zoe, Yolei, and Ken were still in the hospital.

Overhearing what they were saying, Junpei said, "Who else was running with you?" he asked.

"A volunteer worker, a visitor, and three other patients," Dr. Kido said. "All were under my watch. We were running down the hallway but something must have happened."

"The Mortician," Cody said dryly. "He may have them as prisoners." He turned and asked for a phone.

--

The six were stuck into the corner. Their capture was at the door. His gun pointed at them. He shoved Kari into the corner. Zoe made a movement towards her but the click of the gun stopped her. "Too sudden of movements and I'll shoot," he warned them. "Now, on the ground, blonde." Zoe slowly lowered towards the ground and slowly crawled towards Kari.

"You okay?" she whispered. Kari nodded fearfully. Tears were in her eyes. Zoe knew she was terrified. Takuya fell next to them. He pulled himself closer to the two girls.

"You okay, Zoe?" he asked. "Kari?" The two nodded fearfully. Takuya reached for her face and wiped a tear from her face. Zoe hadn't realized that she was on the verge to tears.

The two heard a cry of pain. Zoe's hand shot into Takuya's and Kari buried her head into Zoe's shirt. The man had grabbed Yolei by her hair and forced her on her feet. With the inability to support her weight, her legs bent and the only thing keeping her from collapsing was her being held in the air by the Mortician. He tossed her over into the opposite corner from the others.

Ken ran after her and helped her lean against the wall. She clung to him fearfully. He tried to comfort her but that didn't dispel her fear.

Zoe looked over at them. She clutched Kari and scooted closer to Takuya. He wasn't sure what to do so he put his arm around Zoe. "Will we survive?" she whispered. Takuya fell silent. He wasn't sure how to answer. He didn't know.

"I-I don't know," he replied. Silent tears fell down Zoe's eyes. She hugged Kari with her one arm and squeezed Takuya's hand. Zoe rested her head against his shoulder and she let the tears fall.

**Major Takumi moments as well as Kenyako. (First major Kenyako stuff. [shot repeatedly]) Don't be surprised if I put another chapter up since this was finished Sunday and I was almost done with **_**Somebody's Hero**_**'s newer chapter and I have to do chapter 4 of **_**Games of Spirits**_**. Either way, there are only a few more chapters left! Between two or three chapters left! Almost done with another one!**

**Read and Review. Click the green button below! :D**


	8. Chapter 8: Gunshots

**Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. I will never own it.**

**Chapter 8: Gunshot**

"Does anyone have a phone?" Cody asked searching through the crowd. Several frantic parents had arrived despite the danger. They search for their family members or friends that had been inside of the hospital.

"Where's Zoe?" shouted a blonde haired woman. A brown haired man stood beside her. There were more parents arriving on the scene.

"Takuya!" shouted a mother. The brown haired boy stayed close to his mother but then noticed Koji and Koichi. Shinya ran over to them.

"Where's my big brother and Zoe?" he asked worriedly.

"Inside still," replied Koji. "They maybe dead already."

Shinya refused to listen to him. "Takuya wouldn't be dead! He'd kick that guys butt and come back with everyone alright!" Koji tried to reason with the kid but he refused to budge. He finally gave up.

The three were taken to a car and interrogated to figure out where the possible hostages might be. "Do any of them have a phone?" asked Junpei.

"Yeah, Ken does but I don't know the number," replied Dr. Kido. "His parents do though."

"That's all we need," Cody said. He contacted the headquarters to gain the Ichichoji's number after getting the last name. After a five-minute wait, he called the parents. The mother had fallen silent so he got the number from the father and wrote it down. The cop finally found a phone from one of the parents of the hostages.

He dialed the number and began to wait.

--

They all sat in silence. Rin had back mouthed the man and soon found the gun pointed at her. Rin seemed too stubborn to notice it until it went _click_. She paled but refused to move. Zoe couldn't tell if it was an act of pride or courage. She guessed pride since Rin never listened to adults.

Suddenly, a ringing broke the chilling silence. They all froze. The gun migrated to the direction of where the ringing was coming from. "Pull it out," commanded The Mortician. Ken at first hesitated but then pulled it out slowly. The mercenary walked over to him and ripped the phone out of his hand and flipped it open.

"Who the hell is it?" he demanded.

"I'd think you'd recognize my voice," replied someone from the other end.

"Officer Cody Hida," he snarled. "What do you want?"

"We know you have some hostages," he said. Cody seemed to pause. "We want to negotiate something for their release."

Dan Hunt laughed. "The mighty cops are negotiating with me?" he laughed. "You really lost your touch or are you planning on sending in back up to take me down and this is a distraction?"

"This is a negotiation," replied Cody quickly. "We don't want anymore killed. For the hostages, we'll let you walk free."

--

Junpei and a few other cops had quietly gone around to another entrance from where the hostages were. There were three: a main entrance in the front, one under near the basement and morgue, and another around the back. They didn't dare try the back, since it could be seen so they went to the morgue entrance.

They began waiting for the signal. Until then, Junpei reminded them of their mission. "Once we get the signal, we get the kids and bring in Dan 'The Mortician' Hunt _alive_ if able to."

--

Hunt hung up the phone so he could weigh his options. He'd be called in twenty minutes as they went over the terms.

Rin had still refused to sit and this was irritating the murderer. "Sit," he said.

Rin refused. _Click._ _Bang._ Everything seemed to go quickly. As soon as the bullet hit Rin, Kari buried her head into Zoe's chest. Zoe's hand gripped Takuya's harder and tightened her hold on Kari. Takuya immediately wrapped his arms around Zoe. Yolei and Ken nearly jumped and hugged each other.

Rin fell to the ground and clutched her leg and cried out in pain. "You'll do as I say next time, or I'll kill you," he said. He fired another bullet into her shoulder and she screamed.

"Please stop!" shouted Zoe. She flinched as she found herself standing and the gun pointed at her. Her mind began to race. What was she going to do know? With the gun pointed at her, she could die if she didn't think quickly. "Wouldn't it be easier to keep her . . . alive just in case they call back and don't come to terms with you? Then you could shoot her . . ." she trailed off. Zoe was only digging herself a hole. She changed tactics. "Maybe . . . if you keep her alive, you could display that you aren't kidding?"

The Mortician kept the gun pointed at her and kept silent. Zoe didn't know weather he was thinking about killing her and the others or considering her horrible piece of advice.

"Sit back down," he finally hissed. Zoe's heart pounded out of fear and she sank slowly back down. At least she wasn't shot. They all sat or stood in silence that was only broke by the low moans from Rin or the silent whimpers from Kari.

No one deserved what he or she was getting. Rin may have been an unfeeling brat but she didn't need to be shot. Kari didn't deserve to be scared like this. None of them deserved to be threatened with death. Takuya's mind began turning and he got an idea. "Zoe," he whispered in her ear.

Zoe was jarred from her own nightmare like thoughts. "What?" she whispered back.

"I got an idea. When he turns his back, you go and try to drag Rin away from the door and I'll see if I can jump him," he murmured.

"What?" Zoe hissed shrilly. "Has the terror messed with your mind? You can barely walk!"

Takuya gave her a hard look. "I can walk just fine now," he retorted. Zoe was about to disapprove of his actions but Takuya cut her off. "It's either this or wait until the cops come and free us. By then, we may as well be dead." Takuya did have a point but he forgot that if it didn't work, they'd all be as good as dead.

The phone finally rang and their captor turned his back. The brown haired boy nodded and he quickly wobbled up. He slowly made his way over. Zoe was pale. She hoped it would work but deep inside something would go wrong. She crawled across the ground towards Rin. "You okay?" she asked in a low whisper. Rin glared up at her but nodded.

"So what do you think of the terms?" asked Cody.

"I agree with most of them," he said. "But I want your troops to back off a good several miles first. If I see any flashing badges or blue shirts, consider them _all_ dead."

"That wasn't originally in the terms," Cody nearly shouted. He thought about it for a minute. "Fine," he finally agreed.

That was when Takuya pounced. He fell onto Hunt. The adult was taken by surprise and tried wrestling the teenage boy off of him. He finally flung the boy off of him. Takuya used the wall to get up and forced himself to run at him. The two crashed into each other and fought for the possession of the gun.

Left and right. Back and forth. None of them could keep a grip on the gun. Several times, it was pointed towards the hostages by mistake and several bullets were fired but not one had hit- yet. That was changed when after a ringing shot there was a scream of pain.

Yolei gasped. Ken gaped. Zoe looked up and her eyes went wide. Crimson wetted Kari's gown. She sat and clutched her side. Kari had been shot during the struggle. Takuya lost the right to the gun. He sat up and saw the gun pointed at him. "Time to die," he said.

_Bang._

**Oh no! What's going to happen next? Is Takuya dead?! What will happen to Kari and Rin? What about the others? Will Cody and Junpei be able to get there in time? Tune into the conclusion!**


	9. Chapter 9: A Funeral

**A/N: This is the last chapter everybody! I thank everybody that has been with me on this with their reviewing or just plain reading it. Thank you everybody!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. I will never own it.**

**Chapter 9: A Funeral**

Cody could hear all the bangs from the phone. Fear gripped him. What was going on? He gave Junpei the signal quickly. The hostages were in danger. He hoped that they'd all be able to get there in time.

Koichi and Koji could hear the gunshots and began to think for the worse. Were they all dead?

Dr. Kido gritted his teeth. Those kids that he had taken care of for the last several months were now hurt or possibly dead. The stress was killing him. He felt liable for the situation.

There was a gunshot followed by a scream. Now it was imperative that they get there quickly. From their end, they could hear something fall to the floor and a threatening voice say, "Time to die."

"Takuya!" shouted Zoe's voice, as soon there was a bang. They all sat in anxiety.

--

Everyone gasped as Hunt fell down on top of Takuya. He pushed him off and backed away from the body. "Is everyone alright?" asked a strong voice. They looked through the door's window. Relief filled them all when cops filed into the room.

Several of them helped them to their feet. "We need a doctor!" shouted a cop. "Two hostages wounded. I repeat two hostages wounded."

--

It was an hour and the wounded were rushed to the emergency room. Rin was in less danger of death than Kari was. After the other kids were checked out, they were reunited with their crying families. Takuya was given new crutches and Yolei was back in the wheel chair.

Shinya hugged his brother and cried, "I knew you'd be okay!"

Satomi, a man that was the twins' dad, and Tomoko, their biological mother, hugged them and thanked God they were okay. Mr. and Mrs. Kanbara stood around their son. Tears were in Mrs. Kanbara's eyes and she hugged him so hard that he couldn't breathe. His father was hiding tears.

"Thank God your alright!" shouted Mr. and Mrs. Orimoto as they were reunited with their daughter.

Yolei's parents and sisters as well as the Ichichoji's had arrived when they heard that their children were all right now.

The parents wanted to take their children home but they all refused to leave. They wanted to be sure that Kari would be all right. They weren't the only ones who refused to leave. Tai, Mimi, TK, and their parents had sat in the blood stained lobby where all the horror had taken place only a few hours before.

Takuya sat next to Zoe who looked down at the floor worriedly. Tai paced and Mimi watched him with concerned eyes, ready to jump when he seemed like he was about to snap. TK sat next to her with tears in his eyes. TK's brother had come with his girlfriend to check on his friend's sister.

"How is she doing, Tai?" Matt asked.

"I don't know," he said in a stressed voice.

"How are you doing?" he asked.

"What do you think?" he snapped, waving his arms around. "I'm fine."

"More like a mess," Matt muttered. "She'll be alright. Kari is a tough girl." The others nodded in agreement.

Takuya saw that Zoe was on the brink of losing it herself so he spoke up. "Hey, does anyone something to drink?" he asked. Not many of them answered. He took Zoe's hand and brought her with him to get drinks.

"You okay?" he asked her.

"Yeah," Zoe said in an unconvincing voice. Takuya saw she was a complete mess.

"No, you're not. We just went through hell and Kari's fighting for her life, so I really doubt that you're alright," he said calmly. "Out of all of us, you, her brother, and his friend are the most devastated. If you want to talk, I'm here." There was a silence.

Takuya broke the silence again. "Hey, Zoe. After all of this is done and has settled down, I was thinking . . ." he trailed off. "Do you want to go get dinner sometime?" Zoe glared at his horrible time to ask her out on a date. "O-of course once we know Kari's going to be alright," he added quickly.

Zoe thought about it for a minute. "Maybe," she agreed.

--

Weeks passed and Kari had gotten better. Takuya was released from the hospital and Yolei was now able to get around better. Koichi was finally able to take off the bandages and was able to go home. Though this would separate the others, Takuya volunteered for the rest of the summer and the twins visited them, Yolei, and Kari everyday. Even against what the others would have said, Zoe visited Rin a couple of times through out the weeks. Rin and Zoe weren't on speaking terms. Zoe acknowledged her existence for an actual human but Rin just seemed to ignore her.

On one of the last Fridays, Zoe came in and walked towards Kari's room. Kari was sound asleep and attached to a heart monitor. Over the past couple of weeks, the trauma had taken a toll on her and she steadily became worse. "Hey, Kari," she said softly.

Kari opened her eyes groggily. "Hi, Zoe," she answered weakly.

Zoe went over to sit by her. "So how are you feeling?" she asked.

Kari seemed scared for some reason. "Am I going to die?" she asked. Zoe was taken aback by what she had asked. Kari had stood well under hearing that she had leukemia. What would scare her into asking that?

"Of course you're not going to die," said Takuya encouragingly. "You're going to beat and live on!" Takuya had just walked into the room with some peonies and a banquet of red Chrysanthemums and pink roses in his hands.

"Who are the flower's for?" Zoe asked, eyeing Takuya with a grin.

"Well, this is for Kari," he said, taking the peonies and putting them into the glass vase next to her bed. "These mean 'healing'," he added.

Zoe gave him a sarcastic look. "Wow," she said. "I didn't know you were a flower expert."

Takuya grinned. "Of course not," he answered. "When I was buying flowers, I wanted to make sure I was getting the _right_ ones. The florist helped me on that."

Zoe smiled and shook her head. "Then who are the other flowers for?" she asked.

"Oh, just some girl I know," he joked. Zoe raised her eyebrows. "I mean you! Gez, can't take a joke can you?" Takuya asked, handing her the flowers.

Zoe took them and inhaled their scents. She looked up at him from under her eyelashes. "And what do these mean?" she asked.

"Well," Takuya began. He took a pink rose from the banquet. "According to the florist: the pink rose stands for gentility and grace among a few other things, but here it means 'You're lovely'." Zoe flushed and smiled up at him. Takuya took a red Chrysanthemum in his other hand. "And this has less meanings than the pink rose."

"And that is?" she asked in playful curiosity.

"'I love you'," he replied.

Zoe smiled and took a Chrysanthemum from the pile. She handed it to Takuya. "'I love you', too." She said. Takuya took the flower and wrapped his arm around Zoe. How better could this have gotten? The two went in for a kiss.

_Beeep!_ The sound on the monitor made the two break it off. Zoe and Takuya turned towards Kari's heart monitor to see that the line had gone flat. They didn't need doctors or a diploma to tell them what that meant.

"Nurse! Nurse!" shouted Takuya, rushing into the halls. "Nurse!"

Zoe just went numb. Nurses and doctors with a defibrillator filed into the room. A nurse had the two leave the room. At first Zoe went along with them and tears rolled down her eyes. "No . . ." she said in a low whisper then it became a shout. "No! No! She can't die!"

"Miss, calm down," pleaded a nurse. "Everything's going to be alright,"

"No," Zoe insisted, trying to get into the room but Takuya grabbed her.

"It's going to be alright," he reassured her. "Kari's going to survive."

But she didn't. For what seemed like forever, the doctors tried to fight for her life. "Clear!" _Zap._ It kept going on for a while, but it was all in vein. Kari's heart refused to beat. Finally, the time of death was called solemnly. Dr. Kido came out to tell them the sad news.

Zoe bent her head down in anguish. Fresh tears rolled down her eyes. Her legs gave out and if it weren't for Takuya keeping a firm grip on her waist, she would have fallen to the ground. Kari, the little girl that she had gotten to know over the past three months had died and there had been nothing anyone could have done to save her.

"I'm sorry," Dr. Kido apologized. Joe Kido walked past the two.

Takuya slowly sank to the ground but kept a tight hold on Zoe. He switched his grip into a hug instead of a restraint. "Shush," he said in a comforting voice. He tried to keep his voice from cracking. Tears, too, had formed in his eyes but she needed the comfort. "She's in a better place now. She's in no more pain."

--

A funeral was held the following week. It had been a cloudy day and began to rain as they began saying how much of a girl she was, replaying fond memories of the now deceased girl. Zoe was in a black dress and held a white carnation in one hand and her stuffed white kitten she had gotten Kari on her first couple of weeks working at the hospital in the other.

It was now her turn to put her items on the casket that held the peaceful girl. Zoe placed the white carnation on it and put the stuffed animal on the casket. "Good bye, Kari," she whispered through tears, hoping her friend could hear her in the after life. She returned to Takuya's side.

As the final prayers were said, the casket was lowered. Tai watched soberly as the coffin was lowered. Mimi held his hand and wiped tears from her eyes with her other hand. TK had been crying buckets and held Matt's hand. Ken had his arm wrapped around Yolei's waist and she let the tears fall. Zoe took Takuya's hand. She rested her head against Takuya's shoulder.

When everything was done, they all dispersed. The family and friends stayed a moment longer and finally left. Takuya went to leave with his family. "See you later," he said. She nodded and he left.

Zoe went on her way to catch up with her parents but stopped when she saw a familiar blond haired and blue-eyed girl. "Rin," she said in a voice that wasn't mad or surprised. "What are you doing here?"

Rin seemed uncomfortable. "About the incident in July," she paused. "Thank you for . . ." Rin trailed off. Zoe understood without Rin saying it entirely. "I'm also sorry about the trouble I've gotten you into."

"Don't be sorry," Zoe said in a forgiving tone. "I'm actually glad that that happened." Rin looked at her in surprise. "If it wasn't for that incident, I wouldn't have met those guys, so _I _have to be saying thank you for the trouble."

The two girls stood in an awkward silence. "Well, see you in school," Zoe said.

"Yeah," muttered Rin in response. Zoe went off to join her family with a heavy heart. Nothing would ever be the same.

**It's over! I swear, if I'm not yelled at for letting Rin live, I'm gonna be surprised. Anyway, thank you Ambiekinz, blackandblood, japaneserockergirl, Kirae-Remi, DigiBleach, Digimon122, and talkstoangels77 for reviewing and everyone for reading. I really appreciate it. And this concludes **_**Hospital Community Service**_**.**

**~Kaito Lune~**


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